Protecting our night skies

Protecting our night skies

Light spill around the world captured by NASA

As a child growing up just 300km from the Arctic Circle I was often mesmerised by the Aurora Borealis, the Northern Lights. While walking our dog during freezing winter nights I could not help but stop to look up at the slowly moving fields of colour in the sky – one feel deeply connected to the world and universe while contemplating the outer reaches of space.

Unfortunately, few people in today’s society will have a chance to experience what generations before us have seen. The reason? Skyglow. Our modern day cities with street lights, signage, advertisement, façade lighting, traffic and decorations are leaking large amount of light into the sky, obscuring our connection to the night sky. Other negative effects of skyglow include difficulties for astronomers, disoriented wildlife and a massive waste of energy.

The good news is that we have solutions at hand to minimise skyglow, increase efficiency and improve safety for people. However, some tough coordination between disciplines is needed and outdoor lighting must be planned considering all those parameters.

We want to enable you to create engaging places, save energy and maintenance, make spaces safer and limit light pollution. With your help, future generations may experience the starry sky the way I did.